Patent EP-2269757-A1 (EP)
Inventor: NOWAK ANDREAS DIPL-ING
IPC: B23K3/08
Filed: 2009-06-30
Abstract: The device for soldering a connector made of tinned solder strip with a solar cell to produce solar cell strings, comprises a transport belt driven in time by a drive for moving the connector and solar cell in an arrangement fixed in position to each other to a soldering station, in which a mechanical compressive force is exercised onto the connector and the solar cell during the soldering. The soldering station comprises a base frame (1) for receiving a soldering unit (18) processable on a carriage (11) at the base frame horizontally transverse to a running direction of the transport belt. The device for soldering a connector made of tinned solder strip with a solar cell to produce solar cell strings, comprises a transport belt driven in time by a drive for moving the connector and solar cell in an arrangement fixed in position to each other to a soldering station, in which a mechanical compressive force is exercised onto the connector and the solar cell during the soldering. The soldering station comprises a base frame (1) for receiving a soldering unit (18) processable on a carriage (11) at the base frame horizontally transverse to a running direction of the transport belt with a solder head housing and a feed unit (19) for a separate vertical lowering of the solder head housing in a working position that lies below its horizontal process position at the arrangement of the connector and solar cell to the transport belt or a vertical lifting from the working position into the process position, soldering tips held from the solder head housing and bearing the soldering pins for introducing a defined compressive force during placing the soldering pins on the connector and the solar cell, a blank holder associated to the soldering pins, horizontally processable and lowerable or liftable vertically into the or from the working position with blank holder strips by the feed unit for holding down the connector to the solar cell during soldering in the working position or for releasing the solar cell after the soldering and cooling for its intermittent further transport with the transport belt, and a cleaning device assigned to the soldering unit transverse to the running direction of the transport belt for periodic cleaning of the soldering pins provided with soldering tips. An electrical or pneumatic drive such as electric motor is provided for horizontal process of the carriage. The solder head housing has a vertically arranged guiding bush, in which the solder pin is linearly guided. Each soldering pin is provided with a vertical balance system, which brings the compressive force by a defined spring force during soldering the connector and the solar cell. A pressure spring used in the guiding bush is provided as balance system for the soldering pin. Two vertically stacked leaf-springs that are arranged on top of each other and hold the soldering pin are provided as balance system, and are fixed at the solder head housing. The feed unit has a pneumatic cylinder for producing a rapid lowering movement of the solder head housing. The pneumatic cylinder is pivotably arranged in a sloping position inside the feed unit around its ends turned away from a cylinder rod, which is connected with an arm of a joint lever to slow down at the end of the feed movement, where a further arm of the joint lever is pivotably hinged at a support for the solder head housing and the joint lever is rotatable at an axis symmetrically arranged to the arms. The support is vertically displaceable in guides arranged parallel to each other for the solder head housing. A rapid closure is provided for mechanically connecting the feed unit and the solder head housing. The feed units are provided for producing the feed movement with an electric drive. The number of the solder heads individually situated in the soldering unit corresponds to the number of the connector to be soldered to the solar cell. A heating cartridge provided with a temperature sensor is arranged in the solder pin. The soldering tip is formed as exchangeable wear part. The blank holder has a separate vertically processable feed unit for lowering and lifting the blank holder strips, which are fixed at the carriage. The blank holder is horizontally processable with the carriage at maximum cell timing. The blank holder strips connected with the feed unit are retractably arranged transverse to the longitudinal direction of the transport belt between the soldering tips. The solder head housing is bringable from the working position into the horizontal process position using the feed unit and a further feed unit with which the carriage is processable in the process position over the cleaning device and the soldering pins and the soldering tips are bringable into the cleaning position by the feed unit. The cleaning device has two counter-rotating rollers provided with a sponge coating suited for receiving cleaning liquid, where the rollers are connected to the drive with the electric motor. The cleaning device is vertically liftably formed by the feed unit.